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Then Elihu answered and said:
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“Do you think this to be right, and do you say, ‘My righteousness is before God,’
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when you ask, ‘What profit is it to me? And what advantage do I have more than if I had sinned?’
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I will answer you, and your companions with you.
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Look to the heavens and see; and behold the clouds, which are higher than you.
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If you sin, what do you do against Him? And if your transgressions are many, what do you do to Him?
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If you are righteous, what do you give Him? Or what does He receive from your hand?
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Your wickedness may hurt a man like yourself, and your righteousness may profit a son of man.
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Because of the multitude of oppressions people cry out; they call for help because of the arm of the mighty.
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But no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker, who gives songs in the night,
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who teaches us more than the beasts of the earth, and makes us wiser than the birds of the heavens?’
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There they cry out, but He does not answer, because of the pride of evil men.
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Surely God will not hear an empty cry, nor will the Almighty regard it.
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How much less when you say that you do not behold Him, that your cause is before Him, and you are waiting for Him!
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But now, because His anger does not punish, and He does not greatly regard transgression,
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therefore Job opens his mouth in vain; he multiplies words without knowledge.”
📣☁️⚖️ Summary of Job 35 – “Does Your Righteousness Affect God?”
In Job 35, Elihu continues his defense of the sovereignty and justice of God, while rebuking Job for thinking that righteousness is useless and that his suffering is unfair.
Elihu raises rhetorical questions and important theological reflections:
“Do righteousness or sin change God?”
He emphasizes that God is above all, and that God’s response is not shaped by human deeds, but by His own love, wisdom, and will.
📌 1. Job Is Seen as Justifying Himself and Judging God Unfair (verses 1–3)
➡️ Elihu quotes Job as feeling that:
- Living righteously is of no use
- God does not reward the righteous
🎯 This is a mistaken human judgment, for it assumes that God acts by a simple “immediate return.”
📌 2. God Is Not Affected by Human Sin or Righteousness (verses 4–8)
➡️ Elihu presents a divine truth:
- Human sin does not injure God
- Human righteousness does not add gain to God
➡️ Yet, our deeds do affect other people, not the nature of God.
🎯 God is not like man — He remains perfect, unchanged by human morality.
📌 3. Why Are the Cries of the Suffering Unanswered? (verses 9–13)
➡️ Many cry out because of:
- Oppression
- The hardships of life
➡️ But not all are answered, because:
- They do not cry out to know God
- They do not humble themselves or seek wisdom
➡️ God does not answer prayers filled with pride.
🎯 A cry is not a guarantee that God will answer — the motive of the heart matters.
📌 4. Elihu’s Conclusion: Do Not Expect an Answer Without Humility (verses 14–16)
➡️ Just because Job is not answered at once does not mean God is unjust
➡️ Job has spoken too much without true understanding:
“His mouth speaks words without knowledge.”
🎯 When there is no answer from God, silence and reflection are better than continuing in complaint.
📖 Main Teaching
- God does not need our goodness — we do not set His moral standard
- Our righteousness and sin affect people, not the divinity of God
- Sincere prayer that seeks God will be answered more readily than prayer born of frustration
- Spiritual pride can shut God’s ear to human cries
✨ Spiritual Meaning (New Testament)
“Who has ever given to Him, that He should repay?”
➡️ God owes nothing to man.
“In your prayers, do not use many words like those who do not know God.”
➡️ God is not moved by empty words, but by a broken heart.
“You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly…”
➡️ As Elihu says, selfish prayer is not answered.
“The LORD is near to those who are brokenhearted…”
➡️ Humility opens the way for grace.
🕊️ “Does your righteousness mean anything to Him?” – Job 35:7
🕊️ “People cry out because of violence… but no one says, ‘Where is God my Maker?’” – Job 35:9–10
🕊️ “Surely, God does not hear pride.” – Job 35:13
🕊️ “Job speaks words without knowledge.” – Job 35:16
